Babysitting
by Lyeundu
Summary: Kakashi is looking after baby Naruto and Sasuke when Gai comes over to challenge him yet again. Deprived of his usual forms of competition, the Green Beast comes up with another option. No pairings, spoilers for anyone who doesn't know Naruto's parents.
1. The Challenge

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, I'm just borrowing the characters for fun.

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"Thank you again for watching the little one, with his father off on a mission and Itachi busy at the academy I didn't really know what I was going to do with him today," Mikoto smiled at Kakashi as she handed him the yearling boy. "Speaking of little ones, how have you been getting along?"

"He takes after his mother, with some early indications of his father's speed. I've learned to think of it as endurance training," he chuckled. Yondaime had become a sort of surrogate father for the young jounin, once he had finally mellowed enough to let him in, and he had felt it his duty to look after the infant that, like him, had been left all alone. Fortunately Sandaime had agreed with the idea of an ANBU trained guardian, as any of Minato's enemies might still provide a potential threat to the boy's safety. Mikoto was one of the few who knew the identity of Kakashi's ward, having planted herself in the Hokage's office upon returning after the kyuubi attack and refusing to leave until he told her what had happened to her friend. It had taken her three days to wear the old man down.

"Just wait till he starts walking," she laughed, interrupted by a high pitched yelp from the next room. "I'd better get going or I'll be late. Bye Sasuke, Mama will be back soon."

"Well kid, welcome to the mad house," Kakashi muttered as he closed the door, shifting the boy in his arms as he went to check on his other charge. He let an amused smile reach his eyes at the disgruntled expression Pakkun wore as he entered the room. Naruto had once more latched onto the pug, arms wrapped around his neck to prevent him from getting away.

"Why does this pup persist in the delusion that I enjoy being strangled?" Pakkun growled at the silver haired teen. Kakashi merely shrugged and reclaimed his seat on the sofa, pausing only to retrieve his book and deposit the raven haired visitor at his feet. Naruto let out a squeal of glee at the sight of his new playmate and squirmed over to investigate, the small dog taking full advantage of the boy's lapse in attention to escape and hop up next to his master.

Sasuke tilted his head to examine the fluffy golden patch streaking toward him, eyes widening a bit in surprise as the younger boy tumbled into him, enthusiasm overwhelming motor control for the moment. The tot was attempting to extricate himself when a green figure leapt in through the window, rolling across the table to land posed before the teenager, waiting for him to react. Kakashi kept reading, having grown accustomed to his friend's interesting way of making an entrance and certain that he'd grow out of it before too much longer.

"Greetings my rival, I have come to challenge you!" the Green Beast howled, startling the toddlers. The jounin raised a fist, still not looking up. "No! No more Janken, you picked that the last three times!"

"Sorry then, kinda busy," his friend replied, tilting his head to indicate the little ones who were now engaged in a tug of war over a stuffed panda. The energetic grin faded as he glanced down at them, resurfacing a second later as an idea hit him.

"Well then, if you cannot come out to accept my challenge, we shall have champions compete on our behalves," he stated, finally getting Kakashi to look up.

"I'm sorry, what?" he deadpanned. Gai gestured toward the boys.

"Two children, the very essence of youth, locked in a battle for control! They shall act as our agents and the victor in this struggle shall determine the winner of this challenge!" the Green Beast beamed down at his friend, who merely shrugged and set aside his book.

"You want Naruto? He's nearly as hyper as you are, so it would seem an accurate pairing." Gai nodded, crossing his arms and turning to watch the boys. Kakashi smiled behind his mask, reaching into his vest pocket to retrieve a piece of cookie before letting out a sharp whistle. Naruto twisted around at the familiar sound, dropping the toy and crawling over to his caretaker. Using the sofa to pull himself to his feet, he grabbed the treat with his pudgy fingers and crammed it into his mouth. Gai locked eyes with his rival, less amused at how easy his 'champion' was to bribe. "What? It's a legitimate strategy."

"I would hardly consider this a fair result, you have behavioral information to draw on as an advantage."

"It was your idea," Kakashi shrugged, burying his nose in the book as the blond reached for the tail of the pug he had rediscovered. "A successful shinobi learns to make the most of a situation. If you want more information on a target try a little reconnaissance next time, utilize your surveillance skills."

Acknowledging the reasoning behind his friend's suggestion, Gai settled down on the floor to study his subjects, allowing Kakashi to read in peace. Next time, he vowed, he would be better prepared.

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**(A/N) **Originally intended as a one-shot, but with enough interest and positive feedback I'd be happy to extend it. Leave a review, signed or anonymous, and let me know what you think. Thanks for reading . ^_^

Oh, and in case anybody didn't pick up on it, I've got Sasuke at about 1 year, which would put Naruto about 9 or 10 months, and Kakashi and Gai about 15. And Janken (according to the manga translation I read) is Rock, Paper, Scissors.


	2. Surveillance

"Why'd you train him to come anyway? The kid's not one of your ninken," Gai inquired, watching the tots play on the rug. Naruto gave up his efforts to catch Pakkun again and wriggled over to Gai, trying to pull off his orange leg warmers.

"He likes to crawl under the table. I don't," Kakashi turned the page, scratching the pug's head as the dog mumbled something about who really needed training. Sasuke crawled over to Gai, lifting his arm to show him the stuffed animal.

"Dog," he announced happily.

"That is a panda," Gai corrected, proud of himself for bestowing wisdom on the young child. The boy looked at him for a second, puzzled, before repeating himself louder.

"Dog."

"Panda."

"Dog!"

"Panda."

"DOG!"

"You do realize that you're arguing with an infant, don't you?" Kakashi asked his friend flatly as Naruto started babbling, not wanting to be left out of the conversation. "And it's not an argument that you can win. If the first animal he learned is dog, then anything with four legs is a dog for now."

Gai grumbled something under his breath, pouting a bit at having lost for the second time that day.

"Shi!" Naruto chirped, getting his caretaker's attention. Kakashi looked down into the small face staring back at him, the boy with his fingers pressed against his mouth and lips smacking in a way that mimed eating.

"Keep an eye on the monsters while I fix them some lunch," the jounin rose, moving to the kitchen. Gai nodded and lay back on the floor, letting the blond baby climb onto his stomach and eliciting giggles as he mirrored the faces the boy was making at him.

"That one is starting to smell," Pakkun informed him, rolling over on the sofa. "Table's in the corner, diapers in the drawer. Careful when you open it."

Gai picked the boy up, carefully stepping over Sasuke, and made his way to the changing table, certain that this was a task he could master. He was the Green Beast of Konoha after all, how hard could changing a diaper be? Laying the kid on the table, he unzipped the orange jumper and pulled the boy's feet free. Unfastening the diaper with one hand, he reached down to the drawer at the side, bent over when he suddenly felt a stream of warmth running down from his shoulder. Surprised by the wet spot on his jumpsuit, he peered down into the blue eyes innocently looking up at him. Hearing a choking sound behind him, Gai turned to see Kakashi standing in the doorway with a bottle and plate of fruit, spectacularly failing to stifle a laugh at his friend's misfortune.

"Tried to warn him," the pug mumbled unapologetically.

"I'll take it from here. If you want you can grab something from my closet while you wash that out," Kakashi set the food on the sofa and traded places with his friend. Gai sighed and went to the bathroom to change, starting to think that the deck was stacked against him today.

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**(A/N) **Thanks to NamMiya, PuddlesOnThaMoon, RayneXHatake, and nmmi-nut for reviewing the first chapter, you motivated me to get this bit added quickly, even if it is a little shorter. I can probably add one more section to this story if people want me too, so leave some reviews and let me know. Hope you like it!


	3. Rematch

Gai shifted the bundle on his lap, freeing an arm to tug on the slightly tight collar of the borrowed shirt. The blue eyes looking up at him over the top of the bottle were beginning to unnerve him a bit, he couldn't shake the feeling that the kid was just waiting for him to let his guard down before unleashing another attack.

"He's not gonna bite you know, he's only got two teeth," Kakashi chuckled from his crouched position on the floor, cutting another bite size piece from the apple with his kunai and handing it to boy next to him. Sasuke stuffed the chunk in his mouth along with what he was already chewing, providing a fairly convincing impression of a chipmunk hoarding acorns. "And don't forget to burp him."

Gai eyed his rival suspiciously, not entirely convinced that he wasn't being set up again. Kakashi sighed and rolled his visible eye, passing on the last bit of apple and bouncing to his feet to retrieve Naruto. Draping a rag over his shoulder, he leaned the boy against him and started patting his back. The two exchanged a look as a knock sounded at the door a moment later. Kakashi tensed, flipping the kunai still in his hand to Gai and jerking his head to gesture toward the door.

The Green Beast was happy to assume the role of security guard as the blond started spitting up, eager to escape the striking distance of what he was starting to consider a living booby trap. Opening the door revealed a dark haired six year old rather than an agitated mob or a dangerous assassin, though he hadn't really expected an assassin to knock. He looked up wearily at the bushy-browed teenager standing in his path.

"I'm supposed to pick up little brother," the boy stated, pushing past Gai and into the room.

"Tachi!" the older baby squealed, darting to his brother and trying to climb up his leg. Kakashi visibly relaxed, nodding in greeting and setting Naruto loose again.

"Wait, if he's taking one of them then I can't have a rematch," Gai protested. "Why was I doing surveillance if I don't get a rematch?"

"I don't know, personal growth I guess," Kakashi chuckled. "They're children, not toys, what did you want to do, race them?"

He sighed as he saw Gai's eyes light up, shaking his head as his friend pulled the puzzled younger boy aside and whispered with him for a second. After a moment child handed his brother to the teen and popped into the kitchen. Kakashi cocked his head, an unspoken question at his smiling friend.

"Okay, I've got this one, you've got the crawling mess. We set them loose, the kid and the dog call for them, first one to the kitchen wins." Gai's toothy grin widened even farther. "And no cookies this time!"

"Fine, let's get this over with." Pakkun went to join the younger boy as the two teenagers lined up against the wall, holding the infants a few inches above the floor. "Go."

They set the boys down and the cheering squad started rooting them on as they started crawling. Itachi smirked, pulling a tomato out from behind his back and waving it in front of him. His brother cooed and sped up, pulling ahead as he crossed the finish line and reaching for the fruit.

"You had him raid my refrigerator?" Kakashi looked at his friend, amused at having his own tactic turned against him.

"A successful shinobi learns to make the most of a situation," Gai parroted back at the jounin, beaming. "I win!"

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**(A/N) **There you have it, Gai's persistence pays off in the final act! Thanks to SarahNThatcher, Keke, kirin-saga, and NamMiya again for motivating me with reviews. I've found a couple of stories implying that Sasuke loves tomatoes, but if anybody knows of a better bribe I might revise that later.

I'm not going to try to squeeze anything more out of this particular plotline, but if you like this then check out the 'prequel' I'm currently working on, "Muddling Through".

Thanks for reading! ^_^ Leave a review, it motivates me to write more!


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